Doosan Enerbility signs $640 million Saudi desalination deal

두산에너빌리티

Doosan Enerbility signed a $640 million deal to build a sea water desalination plant in Saudi Arabia, the company said Wednesday.

The company signed the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract with Shuaibah Three Water Desalination Company, a special purpose vehicle of ACWA Power. Riyadh, Saudi Arabia-based ACWA Power is the developer of the project and the biggest water plant company in the Middle East region.

This marks the third time that Doosan Enerbility is working on a sea water desalination plant project with ACWA Power, after the first one in 2006 and the second in 2007.

Doosan Enerbility will oversee the EPC process of the project, encompassing all stages from design through construction and test operations.

The construction is scheduled to begin in September and be completed by May 2025.

The desalination plant will be located about 110 kilometers south of the city of Jeddah, which is on the west coast of the country, with a daily desalination capacity of 600,000 tons. A 60-megawatt solar power plant will be built as well, to reduce the energy consumption during the desalinating process.

The plant will use reverse osmosis technology for desalination. Reverse osmosis technology is a way of purifying water, such as sea water, by using a semipermeable membrane to remove ions, molecules and larger particles.

In 2021, Doosan Enerbility, then Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction, bagged a 780-billion-won ($595-million) deal to build a sea water desalination plant in Yanbu, Saudi Arabia.

“As we sign about one to three desalination plant projects in Saudi Arabia every year, we will continue to expand the business in the market with our proven track record,” said Park In-won, head of Doosan Enerbility’s EPC business.

BY SHIN HA-NEE [shin.hanee@joongang.co.kr]